History of Homeschooling

As long as there has been formal education there is been homeschooling. Children have received academic education at home for centuries.

Birth of the modern home school movement

This movement of homeschooling began around 1960. Three sources started the modern homeschool movement. They all came from very different angles but all progress the movement forward.

John Holt

John Holt wrote on education for approximately 20 years and was a counterculture figure. He came up with the term "unschooling" which meant removing the normal structure methods used by traditional schools.

His philosophy encouraged children to learn through their own curiosity and he founded a popular magazine, which is a resource for home schoolers.

Raymond Moore

Raymond Moore is a second figure associated with the homeschool movement.

His approach was based on his religious beliefs, as he was a former missionary highly devout in his faith.

He believed education should be more than just the learning of facts. He felt public education had many negative aspects and the responsibility of education belonged to parents and the inclusion of a value structure in their core beliefs.

Ayn Rand

She is the third figure that created modern home school movement. She believed every child should have the chance to develop their mind to its potential and her emphasis was on the individual freedom of each person.

All three of these people with a start of the homeschool movement and their three separate views worked well together to bring a complete change in the way many believed and thought about education.

Public education is new

It was not until the second half of the 1900s that public school was mandated by the government. Before this homeschooling was commonplace. All three of these individuals wanted to return to the era were parents were responsible for their children's education and this movement gained popularity in the 60s and 70s.

Why go back?

Homeschooling became the logical choice for those people who began objecting to government run controlled institutions. Parents who wanted to incorporate their beliefs and value systems into their children's learning finally received this alternative to public schools, which do not incorporate religion into the curriculum.

Nothing new

The truth is homeschooling is not a new idea it's actually the normal learning method a century back.

In fact, the history of homeschooling has been around despite the moderate adaptations and changes there are a growing number of parents for many reasons that are moving back to homeschooling.